Brick By Brick
by PennyHill
Summary: DG learns the meaning of brick by brick. Written for the 10-week Tin Man Fanfiction Grand Prix at Livejournal. Entries for Rnd 2 had the prompt of "Brick Route". One-shot; Rated: T. Please read and enjoy!


Written for the first ever Tin Man Grand Prix Challenge; a 10-week fanfiction writing challenge at **tmchallenge** on Livejournal. Authors were given secret codes in order to post their stories anonymously. The intent was to level the playing field between popular and less popular authors. Stories were to rated on a scale of 1 to 5. At the end of the 10 weeks, the scores were totaled and your's truly won 3rd Place! (I never expected that in a million years). So in the end, participating in the **tmchallenge** helps to explain why I haven't worked on my WIP, Let Loose The Dogs Of War.

**Title: **Brick By Brick  
Original Author Code: RU01AC004  
Rating: T  
Summary: DG learns the meaning of brick by brick  
Warnings: None  
Disclaimer: I do not own the characters to Tin Man; only my original characters.

Original Challenge Statement: _The prompt is "Brick Route"._

DG and her guards slowly made their way along the trail. Since she was flanked on all sides by them, she was able to allow her horse to just follow the others along. The advantage was that she did not have to do much other than just enjoy the ride. The disadvantage was that she did not have to do much and as a result, it allowed her mind to wander.

Her parents abhorred the idea of her traveling the Outer Zone so soon after the Witch's demise. The danger was too great they said. The danger came not only from the remnants of the Longcoats but also from the general unlawfulness that ruled the land. It was allowed to flourish under the Witch's reign and it was that which poised the greater threat; more so than any ragged band of Longcoats. Such a prize she would make for anyone who thought of themselves as a war lord, ready to carve out a new regime, and use her as the bargaining chip.

DG had countered that that was precisely the reason why she had to go out in to the countryside. If for no other reason than to spread the word that the Witch was dead, the Queen was restored, Azkadellia had been possessed and was not truly evil, and that law and order would once again return.

She had left her new found friends behind. Wyatt and Jeb left for the east to work with the former resistance fighters in forming new police brigades. It had been a difficult decision. She did not want to see Wyatt go but each had a job to do. Her thoughts drifted back to the garden. They promised to stay in touch. They hugged, but there was no kiss. And the hug was like one that an older brother would give his kid sister. Could she blame him though? They had known each other for only three months and by courtesy of that hologram device, he had had eight years worth of torture. That, in and of itself, would be enough to take the humanity out of anyone. Add Adora's eventual death on top of that, and well……

"Princess Dorothy?"

Her thoughts were interrupted by Sir Rodham, her assigned guardian and advisor. He was middle aged with graying hair at his temples. He was always very formal, very politically correct, and consequently, ever so very boring.

"What is it?" she asked slightly annoyed.

He ignored her annoyance and continued on with his report, "The scout has reported that there is a small farm further up the trail. It has a small pond in which to use to water the horses. The general has decided that we will stop there for the afternoon rest."

She looked over at him. His face was flushed and he was sweating profusely. He looked like he needed the rest more than the horses. She shrugged her shoulders and said, "Okay."

In a short amount of time they reached the farm. The pond was not far from the trail and it was surrounded by large trees with huge trunks. It was late summer and the leaves were turning to that particular shade of dark green, right before they break out in to color. They led their horses to the pond. DG dismounted and looked around while a myriad of attendants tethered the horses together.

Off in the distance she saw a figure. She could not make out who or what it was. As it approached she finally could see that it was a man with a wheelbarrow.

One of the guards along the perimeter of their temporary camp cried out, "Halt!"

The man initially stopped, and then continued towards them.

The guard again cried out, "Halt!"

The man put down his wheelbarrow and slowly walked towards the guard. His fellow soldiers raised their guns at the man and Sir Rodham moved closer to DG. She saw him move his hand to the hilt of his sword. "Really, what good do you think that's going to do?" she muttered under breath.

The man stopped in front of the guard and took out a large handkerchief from the back pocket of his overhauls. He wiped his face with it and then stuffed it back in to his pocket. It was obvious that he was not unnerved by the soldiers pointing their guns at him. DG did not know whether to find that disturbing or not.

"Who's in charge here?" he yelled past the guard and in to the middle of the makeshift camp.

The general walked towards the man and yelled back, "I am. I'm General Fortswight and as soon as we water our horses we'll be on our way." He continued to walk towards the man and his guards. When he finally reached them he told them, "Put down your weapons." Then he looked at the man and asked, "And you are?"

The man stared at him for a moment before replying. "Sam Ulrich." He motioned with his arm first towards the pond and then to the battered house off in the distance. He stated a little brusquely, "You're on what's left of my farm."

DG started to walk towards the general, the man, and the guards. Sir Rodham took a hold of her arm and whispered, "Please don't your highness. It's not safe yet."

She snapped her head around and violently shook her arm from his grasp. "What do you mean that it's not safe yet?! The guards just dropped their weapons." And with that she hiked up her dress and marched towards them. Sir Rodham struggled to keep up with her.

Sam turned his attention to the woman marching towards him. His eyes narrowed at the sight of her dark hair. _Is it HER?_

General Fortswight turned to see what the farmer Sam was looking at. With dismay he realized that it was DG.

Sam's expression softened somewhat once he realized that the woman marching towards him was not _HER_. Once again in a manner unbecoming to royalty, she extended her hand and said, "I'm Princess Dorothy of the Royal House of Gale."

His expression changed once more and it was to one of shock. He swallowed hard. He knew of the tale. The witch, before she took total control of the Outer Zone, killed her sister. All that he could muster was, "No. It can't be."

Sir Rodham interjected, "Yes sir, it is. Standing before you is one of the Queen's two daughters, the Princess Dorothy. The Queen used all of her magic to bring her back from death. She was smuggled to the Other Side and three months ago returned to defeat the witch and restore the House of Gale." His longwinded overture left him out of breath and he took out a small handkerchief to mop the sweat from his forehead.

DG rolled her eyes, "Thanks Sir Rodham for the formal introduction." Then she turned her attention back to Sam. "And who are you again?"

Sam regained his composure. "Sam… Sam Ulrich," he managed to stutter out.

General Fortswight added, "Your highness, we've intruded on his farm." He turned back to Sam, "As soon as we're done watering the horses we'll leave."

"We will be sure to compensate you Mr. Ulrich. We meant no harm in coming here," Sir Rodham quickly added. He was still mopping his face and neck with the handkerchief.

DG could tell that Sam was still in a bit of shock at seeing her. She gently asked him, "Is that your house I see back there?" She pointed to the battered home she had seen earlier.

Sam turned to look at it before answering. "Yeah, it was a nice brick house that had been in my wife's family for a few generations." He ran his big hand through his short hair and rubbed his neck. "What you're seeing now is what's left of our farm."

With genuine sincerity DG replied, "I'm so sorry." She hesitated, and then softly asked, "Do you have any family?"

Sam looked away from her. He did not want to look in the princess' eyes as he spoke. "Besides the wife and I, we had three boys. After the Longcoats killed her, the oldest ran off and joined a band of Resistance fighters. He was killed six months later. My two boys and I stayed here."

DG could do nothing more than nod her head in understanding. Once again they came upon a broken family.

Sam turned to look back at her. "Now that things have settled down a little, each of us takes half a day to work on their memorial." He pointed to the far side of the pond. Underneath one of the shade trees they could make out the start of a pillar. "The youngest boy says we're taking the brick-by-brick route."

DG turned back to look at Sam. "What does he mean by the brick-by-brick route?"

He looked down at the ground and put his hands in his pockets. He shook his head and then he looked back up at them. "He has a lot of his mother in him." He sighed and DG was not sure whether or not he would continue. Then he went on, "His mother would tell him that every time he laid a brick he should do it with a happy memory, 'cause that's how love gets built in to a home." Sam took the handkerchief back out of his pocket and wiped his face. Then he stuffed it back in to his pocket once more. "Candice would take his finger and help him trace the mortar. She'd tell him that was the route that love used to flow through." He took a deep breath. "So anytime he built something he said that he was taking mother's brick-by-brick route."

General Fortswight, Sir Rodham, DG, and the guards all stood in silence. One of horses finally broke it with a loud whinny. One of the attendants signaled that they were done watering the horses.

On impulse, and before any of them could stop her, DG went up to Sam and gave him a hug. "I'm so sorry about your family Sam." Sam stood there, stiff as a board, with his hands in his pockets. She released him, took a step back and went on, "I know that there's nothing that we can do to bring back your wife and son. But…. Your wife was very wise and what she left behind is worth more than what we could ever give."

Sam looked past them and at the pillar underneath the shade tree. Then he finally looked in to DG's eyes. "You've given us a bit of hope back your highness. That's worth something." He turned to the general and said, "You guys had better get going. If you don't stop anymore this afternoon you'll reach the next town before supper. They have an inn there."

DG quietly said, "Thanks Sam. I truly wish you and your sons the best of luck."

Sam said nothing and only nodded his head. He watched the general escort DG back to her horse. Sir Rodham nudged his arm and extended to him a small purse. He whispered, "Please take this on behalf of the princess. We know that it cannot bring back your family but perhaps it can make life easier for those that remain." Sam took it and quietly replied "Thanks."

He stood there for a long time after watching the last of the royal party leave his land.


End file.
